A Nicaraguan national who was in the United States unlawfully pleaded guilty to illegal possession of a firearm before United States District Court Judge Michael P. Mills on August 28, 2025, in Oxford, Mississippi. The defendant, Victor A. Hernandez, 29, faces up to fifteen years in prison at sentencing.
Court documents state that Hernandez was arrested after a traffic stop in Hernando, Mississippi. Officers stopped Hernandez for several driving offenses and found a Smith and Wesson handgun during the stop. Hernandez admitted ownership of the firearm. Authorities later determined that the handgun had been reported stolen from someone in Tennessee.
Further investigation by Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) revealed that Hernandez was not a U.S. citizen and was present in the country illegally.
Clay Joyner, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Mississippi, said: “The Second Amendment is a sacred right for American citizens. Those who are illegally in the United States are not able to enjoy that sacred right and possess firearms. The United States Attorney’s Office will vigorously prosecute those who illegally possess firearms. We thank ICE and the Hernando Police Department for their diligent work in investigating this matter.”
The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Clay Joyner and Scott Lewis, Acting Deputy Field Office Director for ICE’s Memphis Field Office.
The case was investigated by ICE and the Hernando Police Department, with Assistant U.S. Attorney John Herzog Jr. prosecuting.
This prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America (https://www.justice.gov/dag/media/1393746/dl?inline), an initiative by the Department of Justice aimed at addressing illegal immigration, dismantling cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and reducing violent crime nationwide through coordination with programs such as Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
